Backpack Boy

By the middle of the second week of kindergarten, Simon was already racing to beat Alice to be all ready to go in the morning. He loves to beat Alice.

In addition to that interesting picture he drew above, here's a couple other pieces of Simon's work:

Simon's first homework

It doesn't take long: week 2 of kindergarten and the boy already has homework. We tried to pretend like it was a fun and exciting thing, but Simon, having watched Alice do it for the past two years, declared, "It's not fun! It's boring!"

Nevertheless, he sat right down and did it.  He is really the opposite of Alice. He had no trouble focusing and sitting still.  He had a little trouble understanding what to do sometimes, but quickly got the hang of it.

Black Widows

I found these little creations placed strategically throughout the study and I asked Alice what they were.  "Oh, those?  Those are black widows.  I made them. Aren't they cool?"

"Yeah, cool.  Now I see the hourglass shape on the back."

Here are a few of Alice's other, slightly less sinister, creations:

Notice how the legs are attached to the body on all the creatures above.

This last one is a snake. She cut a spiral into a paper plate to make it.

Spray Ground at Dragon Park

In the spring they installed a spray ground at our local park. It provides additional fun to the young ones, I hear.

Saturday morning: Jumping and Mudding

On Saturday morning, I took Alice to Anna's birthday party at an indoor trampoline park called Defy Gravity.  Except for all the noise and chaos, it was fun because I got to hang out with my mom friends (this was the daycare crowd).  Alice seems to have had a good time as well.

Meanwhile, back at home, Zac took Simon down to the pond to play in the mud.

Week One Done!

Simon survived his first week of kindergarten unscathed.  The only thing he complains about is Alice being mean to him in after-school care.

Zac picked them up Friday, and I bought him two cake pops (the bribe for getting on the bus all week and doing better each day). He was pretty thrilled with his reward.

Here is some work that came home with Simon. It's confirmed that he can count. Thank goodness for his preschool because we never taught him any of these school-related skills.

I love the all black first day of kindergarten picture. Way to express your feelings, Simon!

New Departure and Pick Up Routine

Zac is going to be in charge of getting the kids on the bus every morning (I took Alice to the bus stop last year since Zac drove Simon to daycare). 

Zac said that every morning Simon got better (quicker) at saying goodbye and getting on the bus.

Here's a little video of me picking up the kids from after-school care on Simon's third day of kindergarten. We take turns picking up the kids in the evenings, depending on who is cooking supper or running errands. It's nice to be able to collect both kids at one location!

Simon's first day of kindergarten

Simon was not in the best mood on Tuesday morning as we prepared to send him off to his first real day of kindergarten on the bus.  He didn't even want to pose for a picture at first.

But after we made Alice do it, he acquiesced, reluctantly.

Once we got a few mediocre pictures, we headed off to the bus stop.

The bus passes our stop first, picks up people at the other end of the neighborhood, then comes back.

Zac preps Simon for the moment of departure.

It took a very long time, but we eventually got him on the bus.  The driver was very patient, saying she had her own kindergartner starting that morning as well.  The stopped traffic that was piling up in both directions...maybe not so much.  Although once Simon did get on the bus and the traffic was released, one kind woman shouted out her window, "I bet that about broke your heart." So thank you for kind and empathetic people in the world.

I made it through the departure without crying (since having my illness I've been unusually emotionally dead inside -- no energy for feelings anymore I guess).  But as soon as the bus pulled away and we waved to Simon through the bus window, I broke down.  The hardest part was just putting him on the bus when he felt so scared (even though I knew it would be fine-- he was with Alice after all).

When I picked him up from school that day, he said he had a fun day.  He was pretty sparse on the details, but the teacher sent this paper home: 

Jordan Lake Campout

We had our 2nd annual Labor Day campout at Jordan Lake this weekend with friends from Alice's daycare cohort.  Unfortunately, due to my continuing health issues, I didn't stay either night and just spent about five hours there during the day on Sunday.

We got a ton of rain both nights in Cary, but miraculously the campground was spared both times. The lake levels were a bit higher than last year, so we didn't have the nice big beach this year either. But the lake is still pretty shallow in this part, so the kids could swim without much danger.

They had a nice campfire with marshmallows that night.

Simon loves trying to catch fish in his net!

Our friend Chris brought her kayak which was great fun for everyone.

My new phone has an option where it takes these really brief videos instead of just taking a photo. I hadn't turned the feature off and captured a bit of Grumpy Simon to immortalize.  This is what happens when he swims all day and doesn't get enough food on the campout.

This is why he's so worn out: he spends most of the time in the water launching himself.

After lunch, Alice swung herself to sleep in the hammock.

Meanwhile, after Simon refueled, he played Frisbee with himself. He would just throw it and fetch it over and over again.

The next evening, it was fire time again!

The picture above is from the night, the one below is from the morning. Wait, did Zac let them have marshmallows for breakfast?

I love how Anna is getting yelled at in this picture while Alice poses nonchalantly.

Anyway, everyone came home safe and sound, which is all one can hope for.

Frisbee throw

Towards the end of the visit, Nelson taught Simon how to throw a frisbee. He loved it, of course, and got quite good after a couple of days.

Strawberry Cake Pops

There's a Starbucks inside the Harris Teeter grocery store where I shop. I always get Starbucks gift cards from students, but I struggle to spend them since I never buy items at Starbucks.  Except cake pops for the kids.  These were two designed to look like strawberries with faces on them, and they were just too cute.  Simon loved his; Alice nibbled a few bites of hers and threw it out.

Clutter

Seems like the garage shelves are getting a bit cluttered...